Ahmed M. Baghdady

Manager, Research and Content Development

Qatar Foundation

Toronto, Ontario,
Canada

Ahmed Baghdady (EdD) is a research consultant at WISE, an initiative of Qatar Foundation. Until 2021, he was Research Manager at WISE and Adjunct Faculty member at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies in Qatar. Ahmed has over twenty-five years’ experience in education programming, research, strategic planning and institutional development. He has worked in Qatar Foundation for fifteen years where he held research and program leadership positions including six years at the RAND-Qatar Policy Institute (RQPI), a partnership between Qatar Foundation and the RAND Corporation. Ahmed has led and supported various policy and research studies in addition to several strategic planning and capacity building efforts for governments and higher education institutions. Prior to joining Qatar Foundation, Ahmed held program management positions with the Institute of International Education (IIE) and AMIDEAST.

He is an English language teacher by training and has designed and taught a variety of English language and teacher training programs at several institutions in Egypt including the American University in Cairo. Ahmed has Master’s and Doctor of Education degrees in Educational Leadership from the University of Leicester in the UK. His research focuses on educational leadership and policy with a special focus on the internationalization of higher education, both at home and abroad, and its implications for policy and practice. Ahmed has co-authored several research reports in addition to a few single-author publications on topics related to international higher education, education policy, leadership and governance. He is a member of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) and the Comparative and International Education Society (CIES).

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Ramsés Gómez

Global Head, Community Experience at Betterfly

Mexico

Ramsés believes that a deep redefinition in how humans relate to one another and planet is vital to solving humanity’s greatest challenges.

He currently serves as the Global Head of Community Experience at Betterfly. A purpose-driven benefits platform that rewards healthy habits with charitable donations and no-cost life insurance coverage that grows every day.

Ramsés is the former Executive Director of Sistema B Mexico where he advanced the vision of “Business as a force for good”, and he also served as the Director of Academia B at Sistema B International promoting the development of research, methodologies and pedagogical tools to advance the training of a new generation of professionals for the new economy. Prior to it, he served as the Director of Ashoka U for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean to change institutional systems at Higher Education to become supportive environments for social entrepreneurship and changemaking, and prior to that he spent his days as co-founder and Director of Impact Hub Mexico City.

In 2019 he was selected as a Fellow of the Compassionate Leadership network, an initiative supported by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, which aims to accompany the development of leaders – current and future – with the skills and wisdom to build a more just and compassionate world. Ramses is also a member of the BMW Foundation’s Responsible Leaders network, and the global initiative The Wellbeing Project.Among his activities, he serves on Ashoka’s social entrepreneurship selection panel, and is on the advisory board of several social enterprises. He has been a guest speaker at various institutions, and has participated in the co-design and delivery of entrepreneurship and social innovation programs at institutions such as the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Tecnológico de Monterrey, among others.

– What does inner wellbeing mean to you?

I perceive inner wellbeing as one of the most effective and yet one of the most challenging ways of being.

– How would you define wellbeing in one word?

Authenticity. One thing that I’ve observed (and experienced!) to be true is that the more we are in contact with ourselves, the “easier” it is to pursue what is relevant and true. To be able to define authenticity as a path for wellbeing has been the result of a very long and on-going personal journey.

– Are there any rituals or practices you use to enhance your wellbeing?

Nature has been increasingly my go-to place. Also, one of my key learnings after attending the Wellbeing Summit was the idea of “going home”, which has nothing to do with a physical place per se but rather being in constant connection with myself.

– Why is it important that we prioritise individual and collective wellbeing?

So that the work of our field becomes more enjoyable, congruent, and sustainable.

– Do you have any favourite books, podcasts, or articles that you believe support, promote, or educate on wellbeing and related themes? 

Yes. On being by Krista Tippett is my go-to Podcast when I am in need of inspiration. These are two of my favorites episodes: Ai-jen Poo, This Is Our (Caring) Revolution – Listen to the Podcast, and Ocean Vuong, A Life Worthy of Our Breath – Listen to the Podcast.

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CIVICUS

World Alliance for Citizen Participation is an international alliance of members and partners which constitutes an influential network of organisations at the local, national, regional and international levels, and spans the spectrum of civil society. CIVICUS includes the following in its definition of civil society: civil society networks and organisations; trade unions; faith-based networks; professional associations; NGO capacity development organisations; philanthropic foundations and other funding bodies.

CIVICUS has worked for nearly two decades to strengthen citizen action and civil society throughout the world, especially in areas where participatory democracy and citizens’ freedom of association are threatened. CIVICUS has a vision of a global community of active, engaged citizens committed to creating a more just and equitable world. This is based on the belief that societies’ health is directly proportional to the degree of balance between the state, the private sector and civil society.

CIVICUS provides a focal point for knowledge-sharing, common interest representation, global institution-building and engagement among these disparate sectors. It advocates for citizen participation as an essential component of governance and democracy worldwide. CIVICUS seeks to amplify the voices and opinions of ordinary people and it gives expression to the enormous creative energy of the burgeoning sector of civil society.

Website

Ford Foundation

The Ford Foundation is a global, grant-making philanthropy that works to disrupt inequality in all its forms.  

 The Ford Foundation believes in the inherent dignity of all people. Thus it addresses the reality of too many people being excluded from the political, economic, and social institutions that shape their lives.

A vision of social justice guides the Ford Foundation—a world in which all individuals, communities, and peoples work toward the protection and full expression of their human rights; are active participants in the decisions that affect them; share equitably in the knowledge, wealth, and resources of society; and are free to achieve their full potential.

 Across eight decades, its mission has been to reduce poverty and injustice, strengthen democratic values, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement. It works in 11 regional offices around the world and supports programs in over 50 countries.

Website

Echoing Green

Echoing Green has been on the front lines of solving the world’s biggest problems, raising up the transformational leaders willing to speak truth to power and challenge the status quo. 

For the past 30 years, it’s been supporting visionaries around the world who are transforming economies, and pursuing racial and gender equity, environmental sustainability, and more. Echoing Green accelerates talent that will change the world for the better by finding, funding, connecting, and supporting a new generation of social impact leaders. 

It finds emerging leaders with the best ideas for social innovation as early as possible, and set them on a path to lifelong impact. Echoing Green’s community is of almost 1,000 social innovators. It includes past Fellows like first lady Michelle Obama, the founders of organizations like Teach for America and One Acre Fund, and major public figures like Van Jones.

Website

Impact Hub

Impact Hub has been a catalyst for entrepreneurial action for 15+ years. It is a global network of 100+ Impact Hubs worldwide, with 25,000+ people driving change – in 60+ countries across 5 continents. Impact Hub enables inclusive and sustainable innovation at scale by connecting entrepreneurs and innovators to large organizations, cultural and public institutions.

Impact Hub believes world challenges can only be tackled through collaboration. Thus it makes collaboration happen by designing impactful solutions, building business for good and (re)imagining the future. This is what the community of impact-driven entrepreneurs, creators, innovators and intrapreneurs does; taking action – today – to create a better tomorrow for people and planet. 

Impact Hub started in 2005, with one community, in one city. It was a space for anyone who had an idea for a better world to meet and collaborate – a place where ideas turned into impact. Today, it provides access to spaces, resources, connections, knowledge, talent and investments to turn ideas into action around the world. 

All big ideas start small. The time to act is now. And the way to act is together!

Website

The Collective Change Lab

The Collective Change Lab aims to catalyze a global movement towards more transformational ways of fostering just and equitable systems. For systems to transform, people in the system must collectively become more connected, compassionate, and attuned to their interdependence. Thus supporting people, organizations, communities and collectives in catalyzing social change beyond the incremental.

The Collective Change Lab provides practical insight and guidance for attaining transformational collective change through research, practice, leadership development, and narrative change.

Website

The Stanford Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society (Stanford PACS)

The Stanford Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society (Stanford PACS) is a research center for students, scholars and practitioners to explore and share ideas that create social change. Its primary participants are Stanford faculty, visiting scholars, postdoctoral fellows, graduate and undergraduate students, philanthropists and nonprofit and foundation practitioners. As publisher of Stanford Social Innovation Review, Stanford PACS informs policy and social innovation, philanthropic investment and nonprofit practice. SSIR is a shared intellectual space where scholars and practitioners publish inter-disciplinary and cross sector research and ideas to advance social change. The journal is complemented by a website, blog, conferences, webinars and podcasts.

Stanford PACS is a part of Stanford University’s School of Humanities and Sciences and falls under the aegis of the Institute for Research in the Social Sciences. However, Stanford PACS’ seek to serve as a university-wide center with interdisciplinary networks and collaborations by developing and sharing knowledge to improve philanthropy, strengthen civil society and effect social change.

Website